MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION RESEARCH INSTITUTE (MARI)

WELCOME

Climate change and sea level rise is increasingly on the agenda of the public, the media, and decision makers in the public, private and social sectors of society. Focus is almost solely on the hazards and the potential disasters we might be facing. MARI at Old Dominion University is focusing on the solutions, the options we have to mitigate the impacts of climate change and sea level rise, and to adapt to the changes.

To develop the practice-relevant solutions, MARI engages in research that produces the practice-relevant knowledge needed to cope with the impacts of climate change and sea level rise on the coastal zone and the urban coast in particular. In doing so, MARI responds to the knowledge needs of a wide range of community stakeholders, including government, military, private sector, and citizens. The high rate of local sea level rise, the exposure to extreme weather events, and the complex socio-economic structure makes Hampton Roads a natural laboratory for climate change and sea level rise. MARI utilizes this laboratory and works with stakeholders within and outside the region to generate the knowledge that can enable them not only to reduce the negative impacts but also to utilize the opportunities in the changes to come. To ensure that the stakeholders get the knowledge they can apply, MARI works closely with them to ensure a co-creation of practice-relevant knowledge and to support them in the use of this knowledge.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Sea of Change Film Screening: The film about climate change and sea Level rise on Virginia's Coasts will be screened on July 28, 2015; 6:30 to 8:00 PM in the Meyera E. Oberndorf Central Library. The Chesapeake Climate Action Network's VA Beach Action Team is organizing the event. After the film, a discussion about climate consequences in Virginia will take place. Contact: Nate Levine Natel at chesapeakeclimate.org or 757-802-5201.

Risk on the Rise: Understanding and Managing Coastal Flood Risk: A webinar on July 30, 2015 at 8:00 AM PDT organized by RMS will provide insights to make informed flood portfolio management and reinsurance purchasing decisions. To reserve a seat, register here.

Concert for Climate Action: A free concert organized by Sierra Club activists and over a dozen partner organizations will take place on Thursday, July 30, 2015, 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm at WorkRelease, Norfolk Arts District, 759 Granby Street, Norfolk, VA 23510. Contact: Zach Jarjoura at (662) 292-5682 or zachary.jarjoura at sierraclub.org.

Workshop on “Mitigation and Adaptation Research in Virginia”: MARI is organizing a workshop on August 11-13, 2015 at the Hilton Garden Inn, Suffolk, VA. The goal of the workshop is to review the status of mitigation and adaptation research in Virginia and to design a research agenda that can help to provide the practice-relevant knowledge the communities in Virginia need to meet current and future challenges. Support to cover rooms and meals of a number of particiants is available. For more information and details how to apply, see the Workshop Page.

RECENT EVENTS

Follow-up to 3RC: A follow-up event on the recent “Resilient Region Reality Check” on March 17, 2015 at ODU took place on June 9, 2015 in the Slover Library, 235 E Plume St, Norfolk, VA 23510. The available reports include:

Resilient Region Reality Check (3RC): March 17, 2015. Old Dominion University and the Urban Land Institute (ULI Hampton Roads) in cooperation with a number of organizations in the region jointly organized a Resilient Region Reality Check focusing on perceptions of climate change and sea level rise in Hampton Roads. See http://www.centerforsealevelrise.org for more information.

GEOSS Science and Technology Stakeholder Workshops: March 22-26, 2015 in Norfolk, VA. MARI supported the organization of two high-level workshops organized by the GEOSS Science and Technology Stakeholder Network of the Group on Earth Observations (GEO). The first workshop addressed “NAVIGATING SUSTAINABILITY ON A CHANGING PLANET” and the second Workshop focused on “CONCEPTS, TECHNOLOGIES, SYSTEMS AND USERS OF THE NEXT GEOSS.” For more information, see 3rd Workshop announcement and 4th Workshop announcement.

LATEST NEWS

[July 24, 2015] There is a possibility of rapid ice melt, sea level rise and superstorms: The article by Hansen et al. published yesterday in Atmospheric Chenistry and Physics underlines the possibility that a non-linear ice melt caused by climate change will lead to a rapid sea level rise. Depending on the doubling time for ice melt, a large sea level rise might occur in the next 50 to 200 years. The increased influx of fresh water into the polar oceans could cause a larger temperature difference between tropical and polar regions leading to unparalleled superstorms.

[July 21, 2015] New extremes in global temperature A NOAA report shows that June 2015 was the hottest June on record, about 0.12oC higher than the last record, which was June 2014. Both the global land and sea surface temperature set new records, and the first six months of 2015 were the hottest first six months in a year on record. The results are also discussed in an article by Timothy Cama in The Hill.

[July 20, 2015] Scientific climate scenarios indicate the possibility of severe impacts: A paper by Hansen et al. to appear in Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics and discussed in an article by Chris Mooney in the Washington Post considers scenarios that could lead to a rapid large sea level rise. Although many of the details still need to be worked out, the bottom line conclusion, Hansen says, is that sea level rise is “the big impact of human made climate change.”